Lech-Lecha לֶךְ-לְךָ Go Forth Yourself!
Torah Portion: Genesis 12:1-17:27
Genesis 12:14–13:4
12:14 When Abram had come into Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 The princes of Pharaoh saw her, and praised her to Pharaoh; and the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house. 16 He dealt well with Abram for her sake. He had sheep, cattle, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels. 17 Hashem afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 Pharaoh called Abram and said, “What is this that you have done to me? Why didn’t you tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her to be my wife? Now therefore, see your wife, take her, and go your way.”
20 Pharaoh commanded men concerning him, and they escorted him away with his wife and all that he had.
13 Abram went up out of Egypt—he, his wife, all that he had, and Lot with him—into the South. 2 Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. 3 He went on his journeys from the South as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, 4 to the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first. There Abram called on Hashem’s name.
Today’s Meditation:
I always thought Abram was lying about Sarai being his sister. But really, it is true. Some believe she is his half-sister and that they have the same father, Terah. Others think that she could have been Abram’s niece. So, was Abram (Abraham) lying? And he does this again, further on in Scripture.
We will never know the absolute truth about all this, but just think, if your life and your beloved wife’s life were in jeopardy, would you lie? Or would you agree to speaking a “half-truth”?
I think about how people hid Jews in their homes during the Holocaust. If a Nazi official came to their home, they would lie to save the Jews they were hiding. Is that okay? Of course. I had a great uncle who hid out a family of Jews in his home, and I had other relatives in Europe who gave their lives to the underground in Poland.
Sometimes, when a life is involved, one must go before Hashem and seek Him for guidance on what to do.
Today’s Challenge:
Think about a time when you may have said a white lie to protect yourself or someone else. Was it truly necessary? Would you do it again? What did you learn from that situation?
